Written by 
Former Cy Young Award winner Trevor Bauer will rejoin the DeNA BayStars for the 2025 Nippon Professional Baseball season, the club announced Monday.
The 34-year-old right-hander, who played for the BayStars in 2023, has agreed to a one-year contract worth up to around $6 million, including incentives.
A video message from pitcher Trevor Bauer is played in Yokohama on Jan. 27, 2025. (Kyodo)
Bauer is expected to bolster their starting rotation as they seek to capture their first Central League pennant in 27 years. The Yokohama-based club went on to win last year’s Japan Series after finishing third in the CL.
“He’s a big piece on the team,” BayStars manager Daisuke Miura said. “I expect him to be in the starting rotation throughout the season.”
Bauer posted an 83-69 record with a 3.79 ERA in 222 Major League Baseball games for teams including the Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds and Los Angeles Dodgers.
DeNA BayStars manager Daisuke Miura (C) listens to a video message from pitcher Trevor Bauer (on screen) on Jan. 27, 2025, in Yokohama. (Kyodo)
The 2020 National League Cy Young winner joined the BayStars after being suspended for a record 194 games for violating MLB’s domestic violence and sexual assault policy.
Bauer went 10-4 with a 2.76 ERA in 19 games for DeNA before leaving Japan to seek a new MLB contract. He spent the 2024 season with the Mexican Baseball League’s Diablos Rojos and was named the league’s pitcher of the year after going 10-0.
Related coverage:
Baseball: Trevor Bauer pitches in U.S. for 1st time since MLB suspension
Baseball: BayStars call Trevor Bauer’s 4th sexual assault claim “old news”
Baseball: Former Cy Young Award winner Trevor Bauer hammered again